Tried, Tested and True...Take Two

This is going to be a long(ish) post so grab your coffee or tea and spend some time with us. I promise it'll be interesting.

When the first Tried Tested and True event was created, we wanted to provide a forum for recipe sharing that people could go to when they needed something that was already proven, that wouldn’t fail and would shamelessly make them look great. We were truly blown away by the response we received for the event.

With the great success of the first event, we’re launching a second Tried Tested and True event. This time, we're attaching a cause of importance to us, organ donation.

Over the next little while, we'll be blogging about our experience with organ donation. We want this event to be both fun and a way of raising awareness about organ donation. So, if you have a story to share, whether it be your own or someone who is close to you, please feel free to do so!

For today, we're going to give you the VERY EXCITING (well, at least we're excited) details about this event:



We are asking you to submit your health-promoting tried, tested and true recipes. This can be any sort of dish - appetizer/soup/bread/main/dessert - your choice. But, it should be a low calorie dish, one that you've adapted from a higher fat to be a healthier choice, a vegetarian option, just to give you a few suggestions. Please don't feel restricted. Just think about a submission that's healthy and tastes good - that you would feed to someone you love knowing that you were promoting good, healthy eating.

The challenge is officially open at the moment of this posting and will close at midnight on Monday, July 21th (EST).

BUT...an exciting twist is: THERE WILL BE PRIZES! The top three submissions will each receive a prize package. How will we choose the winners, you ask? We are THRILLED to be announcing a guest celebrity judge!

It's CHRISTINE CUSHING!!!!

Christine Cushing is one of the trailblazers of the Food Network in Canada. For those of you who aren't familiar with Christine's work, not to worry, we'll be posting more information about her (including her recipes) over the next little while. You can also check out her website here.

Since Christine will be judging the recipes, we've asked her for her judging criteria. Here are her 5 criteria and the breakdown of her judging, out of 100 points:

1) Taste - It must taste great! ( 40 points)

2) Inventive use of wholesome ingredients - how interesting /unique is the process and or ingredients (20 points)

3) Reducing saturated fat content ( 20 points )

4) Ease of preparation and clarity of recipe - how accessible is the dish to make and are the directions clear and concise? ( 10 points)

5) Visual appeal ( 10 points)

Once all of the submission are in, we will be sending your recipe, along with a picture of your choosing to Christine after which time, she will pick the top three submissions.

A few more details...

Here are the rules

Post a dish that is heath promoting and a sure-fire hit in your home anytime from now (June 7) until the deadline, July 21th. The recipe must appear in full in your foodblog some time between today (June 7) and July 21th (the deadline). Links to previous posts will not be accepted (sorry guys). In your submission, link to this post (feel free to use the Tried, Tested and True Two banner, above), send us the details once you’ve posted your dish with "tried, tested and true two" in the subject line to: triedtestedandtrue(at)live(dot)ca by July 21th with the following information:

Your name:
The name of your blog and its url:
The name of your dish and a link to the relevant post:
The photo you would like to submit.

*Note* If you don't have a blog but would like to participate, send us your recipe and a picture along with your name.

A roundup of the recipe and announcement of the winners will follow shortly after the deadline.

LAST BUT NOT LEAST ....THE PRIZES

Below are some of the prizes up for grab. Christine Cushing has generously donated a selection of her products. There is also a variety of careware jewellery included as prizes. This is donated by Blue Marigold. Blue Marigold is a line of jewellery that Giz produces, where 50% of the profits go to a selected charity.






First Prize: A signed copy of Christine Cushing's newest cookbook called Pure
1 Bottle of Christine Cushing's line of olive oil
2 Jars of Christine Cushing's new look tomato sauce
1 Awareness bracelet and matching earrings**

Second Prize: 2 Jars of Christine Cushing's new look tomato sauce
1 Awareness bracelet of your choice and matching earrings


Third Prize: 1 Jar of Christine Cushing's new look tomato sauce
1 Awareness bracelet of your choice

** Note: The treasure chest you see with the bling contains a collection of awareness jewellery. If you win one of the top three prize packages, you get to pick any design displayed on the website. To view the whole line of available bracelets please follow the link below:



Prize winners can look through all of the jewellery pages, no matter which charity it represents and select their choice. Prizes will be shipped anywhere in the world (please don't be from Antarctica).

We'll have more to share but I think we've said enough for one day.

ARE YOU EXCITED? We are! Looking forward to your entries!